


A Person That Inspires

by CaliginousCandy



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Essay, Other, motivation, quotes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-17
Updated: 2013-07-17
Packaged: 2017-12-20 11:09:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/886552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaliginousCandy/pseuds/CaliginousCandy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An essay about how goddamn motivational Karkat is despite not being perfect or photoshopped or anything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Person That Inspires

**Author's Note:**

> I'm pretty proud of this actually.
> 
> I was a bit disappointed when my teacher didn't end up reading it, though. I think he would have loved it. Especially the quote.
> 
> Shine on, Mr. Auria.
> 
> Keep being a wonderful son of a bitch.

Someone that really inspires me is Andrew Hussie's character Karkat Vantas in the epic, semi-webcomic Homestuck. Karkat is an alien boy who tried to lead his friends to victory in the deadly game of SGRUB. He was born with a mutation which made his blood red; an unnatural blood color for his race. He strove to hide his blood color from his friends and neighbors because on his planet, being different meant you were killed.

Despite this, Karkat dreamed big. He wanted to grow up to be a threshecutioner, part of an elite group of soldiers on his planet's army. His dreams were interrupted, however because his planet was destroyed because of the game, SGRUB, that he and his friends played. Karkat was always very insecure and self-deprecating, even as he struggled to lead his group alive through the game. He always acted ornery, shouty, and generally insulted almost everyone. He would yell and scream and complain about his "past self's" decisions and bad-mouth almost anyone he came into contact with.

But that’s not to disregard Karkat’s more dignified qualities.

At some point in their adventure, Karkat does manage to have some semblance of order amongst his group (even if it’s not for very long) and his friends do acknowledge him as their leader. They do end up beating the game but, by some sick twist of fate, their “ultimate prize” (spoilers: it’s a universe. They create a universe) is ripped from them right before they get to enjoy it.

Something that I really like about him is his colorful language. He has a really creative way of insulting people (including himself) and an impressive vocabulary to boot. He is also extremely verbose, which, because of the entertaining quality of his dialogue, is not always a bad thing.“I’m a disgusting worthless bilgesack on the gargantuan teat of a laboring, leprous musclebeast. My self esteem is so small, its existence is a matter of conjecture among theoretical physicists. I smell so bad, the stench cannot be expressed without even the most eloquent, florid language. The odor my body makes has made poets cry. I have won special awards for discovering new places to touch myself erotically while farting. I unfairly pulverize the competition in asshole pageants, and I have received a lifetime ban from ugly contests by president shitface himself. My blood is not fit to flow through a sewer, and my sign is a pictographic symbol that loosely translates as “please hike up these pants up to this guy’s armpits, chain him to a flogging jut, and make an example out of this sorry sack of shit.” When I look in a mirror, my reflection slowly shakes his head while I wet myself in shame.”

Karkat may seem selfish and childish but he really cares about his friends. He really liked one of his friends, Terezi Pyrope, and it seemed that they may have been a thing for a while. They really liked each other but sometimes that just isn’t enough. Terezi ended what strangled relationship they had and Karkat was, at first, extremely grieved. Years later, Karkat still harbored feelings for her but he made no moves to sabotage what she had with his best friend. He listened to her problems and swore to protect her should his friend hurt her in any way. He offered her advice and compliments and was mature about the whole situation. I believe this is more than can be expected of a lot of men in the world today and here is this boy, just 7 and a half sweeps (about 16 or 17 in Earth years), handling his feelings like an adult and supporting his loved ones.

That is a huge reason that Karkat inspires me. He inspires me to take charge if I have to. He inspires me to help my friends and offer words of encouragment, even if I feel uncomfortable in a situation. Karkat was often floundering and didn’t know what to do but he pulled through. He succeeded in rounding his companions up and getting them through the game to create a new universe. He survived an entire not-childhood full of fear and adversity. He came out of it bruised and possibly broken but he still has not given up.

Karkat Vantas may be a fictional character but I learned a lot from him about persevering and being true to one’s self, even if you made really stupid mistakes in your past.


End file.
